A Day In The Sun
by Thomas Mc
Summary: Catherine plans a very unique surprise for Vincent and gives him a very special day that he will never forget.
1. Surprise Road Trip

**A Day In The Sun****  
**_By Thomas Mc_**  
**

* * *

**Chapter 1: ****Surprise Road Trip**

**May 2005**

For the last four days, Catherine's emotions had been flirting along the edge of _giddy anticipation_. It had begun on Monday afternoon, when Vincent had sensed _curiosity_ then _surprise_ then _contemplation_ and finally a strong flash of something he suspected was _inspiration_ leading to a _gleeful giddiness_, which was quickly joined by _anticipation_. Something had given her an idea and she was about to run with it. The rest of the week, he knew she was up to something but she steadfastly refused to give him as much as a hint. He did not have a clue what was on her mind and his curiosity was driving him to distraction.

Vincent entered their Central Park West brownstone Friday afternoon and was surprised to realize that all of their children were already home. It was such a rare thing to have them all home at the same time much less this early in the day. When asked, they told him that, per their mother's insistence, they were waiting for her to get home. The only exception was Naomi, who was inWashingtonD. take her entrance exam for the F.B.I. training academy. The only hint Catherine had given the children was that it was part of a big surprise for their father. Vincent was still completely in the dark.

Less than an hour after Vincent got in, Catherine arrived home from work and suggested that everyone quickly pack-up for a weekend at the family's Connecticut lake house. She told them that they had an hour to pack. There was a cheer from the children, they loved going out to the lake house, and suddenly it was a mad scramble of packing for the unexpected road trip.

Vincent was immensely surprised. Though they had been to the Chandler family lake house many times since their wedding fourteen years ago, it usually took a couple of days, at least, to plan the logistics for the trip. He figured that must be part of what Catherine had been doing the last four days. The continued sense of _secrecy_ and _giddiness_ in her emotional state told him that there was still more going on than just a family trip to the lake this time. She had something else planned besides just a weekend at the lake house.

Vincent smiled bemusedly as Catherine was rushing the children through their packing. It turned out that she had already packed their own bags for whatever adventure she had planed for them.

The children had dragged their packed bags into the parlor when Jacob suddenly looked up in surprise and his face lit up with a big smile. "Linda is here." One advantage of the bond that had formed between Linda and Jacob was that they always knew when the other one was near. Jacob ran to the back door, opened it an inch, and peered out. Then he announced what he saw. "Joe, Sammy and Elizabeth are also here." This brought Charles to the back door in short order. He was always happy to seeElizabeth. They had been very close almost since birth.

Catherine herded the rest of them out the back door. Three rented vans were waiting in the alleyway behind the brownstone. Sharon Gains got out of the middle van and climbed into the third van with the rest of her family. The Gains family had been close to Vincent's family ever since the 9/11 terrorist attack.

Vincent's family quickly loaded their bags into the back of the middle van. Then Jacob made a beeline straight for the third van and settled himself down next to Linda Gains who greeted him with a hug and a quick kiss. In the four years since they had met beneath the destruction of the World Trade Center towers, Linda and Jacob had become very close edging over into the realm of young romance. Though still in the puppy love stage, there was little doubt in anyone's mind where that relationship was eventually going to end up. At the same time, Charles headed straight to the first van to be with his best friend Elizabeth. They had been born two days apart, and they had practically grown up together.

Vincent, Catherine and the rest of their children piled into the middle van. In minutes, the three vans pulled out and headed north towardConnecticut. The two-hour drive went without incident and, right around dinnertime, they pulled up next to the Chandler family lake house. There was already another van parked out front of the house and Catherine's friends, Nancy Tucker and Jenny Aronson came out to greet them.

As they entered the lake house, they were met by Paul Tucker, Nancy's husband, and the smell of fresh hot pizza. They all dumped their bags, unceremoniously in the parlor and everyone quickly grabbed up a pizza slice and then gathered on the large front porch of the lake house to eat and talk. The predominant emotion seemed to be a combination of _amusement_, barely suppressed _excitement_, and _anticipation_. It was obvious to Vincent that everyone except him and the children knew what was going on but those in the know refused to divulge their plans. After several subtle gambits to find out what was going on failed to elicit an explanation, Vincent gave in and decided to just relax and enjoy the ride.

The pizza was soon consumed and they all went out to the fire pit on the beach. They spent the next few hours around the fire enjoying each other's company. Finally, as it got dark, Nancy, Paul and Jenny got intoNancy's van and headed out to Nancy and Paul's home. A little while later Joe's family and Chris's family each took one of the two guest cabins that were all that was left of the resort that had once existed here before Catherine's grandfather bought the property during the Great Depression and built theChandlerlake house. Vincent and Catherine's family retired to the main lake house.

Jacob and Linda remained by the fire for a little bit longer, holding hands and talking. A large part of their conversation revolved around attempting to figure out what the big surprise might be.

~ x x x x x ~

Early Saturday morning, immediately after a quick breakfast, Catherine urged Vincent to put on his best clothes including the ruffled white shirt that she liked so much. He discovered that she had also packed his best medium gray hooded cape, his best knee high boots and a brand new pair of dark blue leather pants with matching leather vest. All of which she insisted that he wear. She also insisted that the children all wear their best tunnel style clothing. Once Vincent was dressed, she shooed him out of the bedroom so that she could get dressed.

Upon entering the parlor, Vincent noticed that Jacob and Charles were both dressed in outfits very similar to his own. The three girls were dressed in what Catherine often referred to as tunnel chic. It gave them an almost medieval appearance.

A half hour later, Catherine came out of the bedroom. She was dressed in the same forest sprite costume that she had worn to the Halloween party at the top of theEmpireStateBuilding, sixteen years ago. Over a light green body stocking, she wore a long diaphanous dress that looked as though it were made from spider web silk and it shimmered iridescently when she moved. She wore glittering forest green shoes and in her reddish brown hair was a silver tiara bejeweled with sparkling emeralds. At her waist she wore a belt made of silver leaves chained together on which hung a small pouch that appeared to be made of large green leaves and looked as though it might just contain fairy dust. The overall effect was totally enchanting.

The jaws of Vincent and all five of the children dropped when Catherine stepped into the parlor. She and Vincent stood for a long time, face to face, while each drank in the sight of the other.

At that point, everyone heard the sounds of other vehicles coming up the gravel drive in front of the house and Jacob announced that the others had arrived.

They all went outside to be confronted by Joe's family and Chris's family. Vincent looked around at everyone realizing that they all appeared to be dressed like something out of a medieval fairytale. Some were a little more far fetched. Sammy was wrapped from head to foot in a brown hooded cape. She was grinning like a Cheshire cat and Vincent could sense a great deal of _amusement_ coming from her. Joe was radiating _curiosity _then _surprise_ as he caught sight of Catherine.

Vincent shook is head as his curiosity surged. "So what exactly is going on here? It's certainly the wrong time of the year for Halloween."

Catherine smiled enigmatically at him as she responded. "We are all going to a very unique event."

Vincent looked at her in surprise. "Going?" He glanced up at the bright sunlit morning sky. "In broad daylight?"

Catherine laughed. "Don't worry dear. We will all be watching out for you and the boys. Being on the road today is a lot less dangerous than you might think."

"How can that be?" He questioned her.

"That's part of the surprise." She responded with a huge grin. "You will see soon enough."

Vincent glanced at the others.

Joe spoke up. "Don't look at me. We've all been sworn to secrecy. Cathy can be very persuasive."

They all piled into the vans and ten minutes later, in the bright morning sun, they pulled out from in front of the lake house. Only Vincent's total faith in Catherine kept him from cringing as they turned onto the highway in broad daylight, though he did pull his hood up over his head. He could also sense tinges of nervousness coming from both his sons in the other two vans. Then he sensed a definite surge of _amusement_ from Catherine in response to his actions.

After about a dozen miles, they turned off the main highway onto a two-lane farm and market road. Within about a mile, they had ended up in the middle of a slow moving line of cars. Vincent glanced nervously around, aware that they were effectively hemmed in. "Maybe I had better climb into back so I will be out of sight."

Catherine smiled over at him, radiating _confidence_, and _amusement_ as she patted his knee. "Don't worry about it, you're just fine where you are, my love. Trust me, even if someone sees you it won't matter."

Seconds later, they inched past a police officer who was apparently directing traffic. The police officer's gaze swept past their van momentarily making eye contact with Vincent. He did a classic double take then he was staring straight at Vincent. Vincent sensed _surprise_ and _interest_ coming from the officer but no alarm.

Vincent was now acutely aware that his hood was totally inadequate cover in the bright daylight and suddenly felt very nervous, though he could sense no worry from Catherine. In fact, she seemed not only totally _unconcerned_, she was actually a bit _amused_. The Officer stared at Vincent for about a half second, shrugged, shook his head and, with an apparent chuckle, returned his attention to the rest of the line of cars. A moment later, Vincent observed the officer displaying a similar reaction to the van behind them. That van contained the Gains family and Jacob. The officer then stared again at Vincent for a moment before turning his attention back to directing traffic.

Vincent looked over at Catherine. "What exactly is going on here?" He was still a bit stunned by the reactions of the police officer.

Catherine grinned at him. "Like I said, it's a surprise." Then she returned her attention to the traffic and her driving.

Fifteen minutes later, they approached a second officer that was directing the majority of the line of traffic off the road and into a large open field. Joe, in the van in front of them, turned off into the field. This officer reacted almost exactly like the first one had when they pulled even to him. Catherine followed Joe into the field. The field was already nearly a quarter full of cars. A short time later, Joe, Catherine and Chris all parked next to each other.

As Catherine put the van into park, she called out merrily. "We're here."

Vincent glanced around nervously at all the people getting out of the cars that surrounded them while more cars quickly filled in behind them. All around them were soon dozens of people. Over a third of the people moving through the field were dressed in some type of medieval costume. Nearly half of those in costume carried some type of medieval weapon.

Catherine turned to Chris as they got out of their vans. "You did remember to get them?"

"Of course I remembered." Chris responded with a grin as he stepped to the back of his van. "We wouldn't want Vincent and the boys to look out of place." He chuckled at his own joke.

_**Continued in Part 2**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

V.12.4.2


	2. Crowds and Sunshine

**A Day In The Sun**_  
By Thomas Mc_**  
**

* * *

**Chapter 2: ****Crowds and Sunshine**

Chris opened the rear hatch of the van he had been driving and pulled out two short swords in their sheaths, and one, very large, long sword, also in its sheath. He leaned the swords against the side of the van.

Catherine drew Vincent over to where Chris was, and then she reached up and gently pushed Vincent's hood back leaving his head exposed to everyone's view. Chris handed Catherine a black broad brimmed had with one side pined up and a large white fluffy feather stuck in it. It made Vincent think of the three musketeer movies.

Catherine placed the hat on his head. "There we go. The perfect rogue to sweep an innocent forest sprite off her feet." She then took the large sword that Chris handed her and attached it to Vincent's wide leather belt. "Every medieval rogue must have his sword." She stretched up, threw her arms around his neck and planted a kiss on him. "You have to be able to defend your conquests." She kissed him again.

Catherine released Vincent, reached into the back of the van that she and Vincent had been riding and pulled out a pair of translucent blue, green and yellow butterfly style wings that measured four feet top to bottom. With a little help from Vincent, she was able to get the wings attached to a harness that was hidden beneath her top. Finally, she pulled out a mask that was shaped like two silver veined leaves joined together with an eye-hole cut into each leaf.

Vincent was again aware that they were being noticed by many of the people around them. Some reacted with _surprise_, some with _amusement_, some with _curiosity_, there were even a few double takes, but nowhere was there even a hint of fear. In fact, the strangers around them all exhibited emotions of _excited anticipation_ and many of them greeted Vincent and his group with a smile and an occasional wave. A few of the greetings were in cheery words of welcome in a fake old English accent.

Then it was Vincent's turn to do a double take when a tall shapely Amazon, wearing a chainmail bikini, long brown hooded cape, and sporting a sword as big as his, stepped out from behind Joe's Van. The road rash on the back of her left arm and the burn scars on her left back, shoulder and upper thigh only served to help complete the barbarian warrior maiden illusion. The road rash was from her youth and the burn scars were a souvenir of the 9/11 World Trade Center terrorist attack. Despite the scars she really looked very sexy in her outfit.

For a moment, Vincent stared at her in amazed surprise then he responded. "Sammy?"

Joe was dressed as the perfect proper Renaissance nobleman. Vincent could not image a more mismatched looking couple than these two. The fact that their appearance was so diametrically opposite was part of what made them look so charming together.

Chris and his son Lawrence were decked out as barbarian warriors, right down to their matching horned helmets. Sharonwas dressed like a lady of the court. The image was just as fascinatingly strange as Joe and Sammy.

Linda's dress made her look like a medieval girl of the court except that she also had a short sword strapped to her waist. Little Elizabeth was dressed in a standard issue Disney style Snow White outfit.

Catherine strapped the two short swords to Jacob and Charles then Chris produced two more hats similar to Vincent's for them. "My, my, I seem to be surrounded by charming rogues." Catherine laughed as she took in the sight of Vincent and his sons. Then she addressed her sons. "You two better fetch your lady fairs before some other rogues make off with them." She giggled as she faced Vincent then her grin widened.

Vincent was finally beginning to relax as it became obvious to him that no one here seemed to consider his appearance to be more than mildly remarkable. Then he became aware of Catherine's gaze and looked into her smiling eyes.

Catherine burst into a radiant smile as she took hold of both his hands. "You look absolutely magnificent in the morning sunshine my love."

Vincent's fangs appeared as he responded. "And you are the most beautiful sprite to ever grace the spring morning."

Catherine and Vincent embraced once then Catherine held out her elbow. "Shall we go to the faire, my lord?"

Vincent smiled, swept a courtly bow and took Catherine's arm. "It would be my pleasure my lady."

Having caught on to what was happening; Jacob faced Linda, a huge grin spreading across his face, fangs fully displayed. "Well Lady Linda, shall I accompany you to yon faire?"

Linda giggled and blushed. "I would be honored gallant sir." She linked arms with him.

Charles took Elizabeth's hand, also showing his fangs in a big grin

They all started off in the same direction as the rest of the crowd walking toward the Castle like entrance to the faire.

After a short walk, they reached the faire entrance and became engulfed in the crowd that was slowly making their way through the gates. Catherine pulled out a stack of tickets and handed them out to the rest of the group. Though they drew a lot of attention from the crowd around them, the predominate emotions were _curiosity_, _amazement_ and _amusement_. Many greetings and comments were exchanged. Everyone around them behaved as though they believed that Vincent and his sons were exactly what they appeared to be but it was all taken in lighthearted fun.

The guardian at the gate checked over Vincent's sword to be sure it was properly tied into its sheath. He then took Catherine and Vincent's tickets and passed them through the gate with a parting admonition that all duels must be taken outside the gates of the village, or to the tournament field. The rest of their party was passed through in the same manner.

Seconds after Catherine and Vincent's group had passed beyond the entrance to the Renaissance Faire, a voice called out from somewhere up ahead of them. "Vincent, Cathy, over here!"

Vincent glanced around and spotted Catherine's friend Jenny standing on a stone bench beside a sculpture of a knight in armor and waving her arms above her head to attract their attention.

Jenny was dressed as a generic renaissance lady of the court. Vincent and his group headed for her location. As they approached, they spottedNancyand Paul Tucker dressed as Robin Hood and Maid Marian standing beside Jenny.

"Jenny, Nancy, Paul, you made it." Catherine greeted them enthusiastically.

"Are you kidding?" Jenny responded, as she looked Vincent up and down. "How could I possibly miss the chance to see your handsome rogue lion on his day in the sun?"

Paul spoke up. "Well gang. Shall we mingle with the rest of the crazies."

Nancygave him a nudge in the ribs. "Hey, I happen to like being crazy occasionally."

The group headed further into the faire grounds. As they proceeded, Vincent glanced around at the diverse group of people wandering the grounds. As near as he could figure, nearly two-thirds of the people were in ordinary street clothes. About half of the ones in normal clothes were gazing around with their mouths hanging open in total amazement. He figured that his must be their first time to the faire. Then, realizing that his mouth was also agape, Vincent closed his mouth trying not to look like all those other first timers.

While trying to not be too obvious about it, Vincent was taking in the incredible variety of costumes on display. He spotted a dozen historically accurate Renaissance ladies and gentlemen mixed with all types of totally imaginary fantasy creatures. There were characters from the idealized versions of dozens of classic fairy tales. He was surprised at how many girls he saw sporting some type of large fairy wings. Catherine wasn't the only sprite wandering the grounds though he thought that she was definitely the most beautiful. Standing together by a food stand, he saw four young men dressed in classic musketeer style costumes. They were talking to a fifth young man in a fairly accurate rendition of a medieval samurai warrior.

As they were walking past the musketeers, Vincent's attention was drawn by the sound of clanking metal and saw two knights in full armor walking up to a small pavilion that was selling canned sodas. Vincent chuckled and when Catherine glanced curiously at him he remarked nodding toward the knights. "Canned people drinking canned soda." Catherine shook her head at his pun then giggled.

Vincent's attention was diverted by two half-pint knights in chainmail as they approached him. They both stopped right in front of Vincent and stood in front of him, looking up at him in awe. Vincent figured that they were probably around seven and eight years old. While trying to decide how to react, Vincent sensed a strong emotion of _delight_ from close by. He glanced up to see a couple in ordinary street clothes staring at him. The woman squealed in delight, and raised a camera. "Tony, Billy, look at Mommy." She called out. The two youngsters faced the couple and Vincent clearly heard the sound of the shutter. "Fantastic." She called out smiling at them as her gaze swept Vincent's family. "Your costumes are absolutely fantastic." Her attention shifted to her two boys. "Come on boys there is a lot more to see." The two boys continued looking at Vincent and his two sons for a few moments more before reluctantly following their parents.

Five seconds later, a young girl, about six years old, dressed in the ball costume from Disney's 'Beauty and the Beast' movie, walked up to Vincent and stared up at him. A young couple came up. The male complimented Vincent's costume as the woman, distracted by the shopping bag she was adjusting on her arm, took the girls hand. The woman glanced at Catherine and Vincent then suddenly froze and stared hard at Vincent.

"I know you." The young woman remarked. Vincent could sense _extreme_ _surprise_ and _recognition_ in the woman. "I've seen you before." Her eyes narrowed and there was a hint of _confusion _then her face lit up with a memory. "Fifteen years ago . . . at a Halloween party at the publishing house where my father worked. You were there with a bunch of orphan kids. When the party was winding down, I was so fascinated by you that I tried to leave with you and those other kids. You took me back inside to my parents and told me that any time I read about you, you would be near by. Then you recommended the book 'The Hidden Kingdom' to my parents. It became my all time favorite book."

Vincent and Catherine stood there stunned. They both remembered the incident and the eight-year-old girl that had followed them out of the party. Catherine recovered first. "It's a pleasure to see you again. I see you have a little girl of your own now."

The young woman blushed and glanced at the ground. "Yea, that's my daughter, Cindy. I'm afraid I was a bit too young when I got married." She glanced down at the little girl holding her hand and staring up in awe at Vincent. The young woman looked back up at Vincent with a smile. "She's as much a 'Beauty and the Beast' and 'Hidden Kingdom' fan as her mother and grandmother." She glanced around at the rest of Vincent's group, pausing at his two sons, and then back to Vincent. She frowned and cocked her head slightly as the _surprise_ he felt from her returned twice as strong. After a second, she recovered and smiled. "Well it was great seeing you again." She seemed to hesitate a moment then threw her free arm around Vincent, gave him quick hug and whispered to him. "You're not really wearing a costume, are you?" Then she released him and smiled at Catherine. "Better keep an eye on him. He's too good looking to leave lying around loose." Then she turned, put her free arm around the man's waist. She walked off with her husband and daughter while humming the theme song from Disney's 'Beauty and the Beast'. The daughter kept glancing back at him till the crowd swallowed them.

Joe turned to Vincent with a chuckle. "Well it seems that you're a hit.

Catherine had felt the _surprise_ in Vincent and asked. "What did she say to you?"

Vincent looked at Catherine, still a bit stunned, then responded. "She told me that she knew I was not really wearing a costume."

Catherine stared back in surprise then laughed. "Come on. Let's look around before any more women hit on you."

~ o ~

They came upon a living chess match and decided to stop and watch for a while. Being an avid chess player Vincent quickly realized that this game as more about the antics of the various chess pieces than about any real strategy.

He found the whole thing very amusing. "I wonder what Father would think of this game?" He muttered to himself.

Towards the end of the game, the white queen was brought up next to the red king putting him in check. He took off running around the board dodging in and out among the remaining pieces with the white queen chasing after him. Then the red queen took off after them yelling for the white queen to leave her man alone. The judge called an end to the game and declared it a draw.

~ o ~

A half hour later, they were passing one of the many stages scattered throughout the faire. Chris pointed to a bulletin board and commented. "It says that 'Merlin the Magician' starts in two minutes. Let's stay and watch the show."

Vincent knew that Chris had a fondness for magic acts. At Winterfest, he was always right there with the children that surrounded Sebastian when he did his sleight-of-hand tricks. Vincent grinned; he too had a soft spot for magic shows. "It sounds like fun." The entire group found seats near the center of the rows of benches. The seating filled up quickly and it was soon standing room only. From the comments Vincent overheard, this particular performer had been here every year since the faire first opened.

An old man, mumbling to himself, tottered out onto the stage. He had a long gray beard, and was wearing the classic long robes and pointed hat decorated in astronomical signs that were the standard attire for your average well-dressed wizard. As he made his way toward the center of the stage, he waved a wand negligently about. There was a sudden burst of thick smoke boiling up from the stage, apparently startling the wizard. As the smoke cleared a small potted rose bush was revealed. The magician looked at the small bush in surprise then looked at his wand. He shrugged, shook his head and mumbled some more. With a flick of the wand and another puff of smoke, the rose bush disappeared. He shoved the wand up his sleeve then, with a startled exclamation, seemed to notice the audience for the first time.

The old wizard smiled at the audience. "Oh, hello. I suppose you are all here for the magic show." He raised his hands dramatically as he scanned the audience. Then he froze as his gaze fell on Vincent.

At that same instant, Vincent recognized the face behind the long gray beard. It was Sebastian, a street magician and a long time helper from New York. A half second later, Catherine also recognized him. "Sebastian." She remarked quietly.

"So, this is where he disappears to every spring." Chris commented to Sharon.

Sebastian/Merlin the Magician shook himself then scanned the audience in befuddled surprise. "Ah, what is everybody here for?"

"Merlin the Magician!" The audience responded.

"Merlin?" He looked puzzled. "Oh, that's me. Would you like to see some magic?"

The audience cheered. Catherine remarked, grinning, to Vincent. "Nice recovery."

Sebastian/Merlin the Magician launched into his routine and everyone was soon totally engrossed. For years, Vincent had watched Sebastian do his little tricks at Winterfest but the magic tricks he was doing on his stage were far more elaborate and some were surprisingly spectacular.

When the show was over, Sebastian was at the back of the audience collecting donations as the people filed out. As Vincent and his group came up to him, Catherine dropped a few bills into his hat. He reached out to touch Vincent's arm. "I expect to hear all about your day at the faire, when I see you at the next Winterfest."

The teenagers wanted to go off on their own so, after a bit of cajoling, it was allowed. They agreed to join back up in front of the glassblowers shop in four hours. They also had cell phones in case anything urgent came up.

Joe and Sammy wandered off to look around on their own. Chris and Sharon also took off on their own. Jenny suggested that little Nancy and Brigit go with her over to the area that had all the amusements for the youngest children. This left Vincent and Catherine found themselves wandering the faire grounds on their own.

_**Continued in Part 3**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

V.12.4.2


	3. Strange Encounters

**A Day In The Sun**_  
By Thomas Mc_**  
**

* * *

**Chapter 3: ****Strange Encounters**

On their own for the time being, Catherine and Vincent stopped at one of the clusters of food courts for lunch. While they were eating, several people came by to get a closer look at Vincent and Catherine. They all acted and talked as though Vincent was exactly what he appeared to be. However, their emotions reflected _amusement_, _amazement_, _curiosity_, and, particularly among the young children, _awe_. Even though he knew it was all pretend, there was something so liberating about the way he was treated. Even the jokes about his appearance only served to amuse him because they were meant in harmless fun.

It was about a half-hour after their meal and by now Vincent had completely relaxed to the situation. Vincent and Catherine were strolled the grounds looking into the shops and taking in the sights. He was enjoying the unique experience of walking among crowds of people in broad daylight and feeling totally accepted. He had even managed to come up with a half dozen humorous and/or medieval appropriate comebacks for comments about his leonine appearance. The one that got the best response was, "My lord father always claimed that my mother was a real wildcat."

In one of the shops Catherine spotted a gorgeous blue and black leather outfit of vest, pants and hooded cape matched with a cream-colored buccaneer style shirt. With some serious wheedling, she pushed Vincent into trying it on. While he was changing, the shopkeeper showed her a matching outfit of a black and blue leather vest-like top, matching knee-length leather skirt, identical cream-colored shirt, and blue cotton leggings. She told the shopkeeper to set the outfit aside for her.

Vincent came out of the dressing room looking magnificent in the new outfit. Catherine and the young woman waiting on him both stared in open mouthed appreciation.

After a couple of seconds the shopkeeper recovered her wits. "That is a perfect fit for you sir." She enthused. "The colors are a perfect compliment for the color of your fur and the leather is the best quality. Tough enough to be very claw resistant."

Though Vincent could feel the _humor_ within the shopkeeper, he also could sense that she was serious about the fur and claws comments. It was as though she simultaneously _knew_ he was in makeup and costume yet she _believed_ he was real. He was thinking that it was the same type of disjointed acceptance he seemed to be encountering all around him today.

Several other customers in the shop also came over and complimented Vincent.

Catherine was looking at Vincent, thinking how incredibly sexy he looked and how great they would look in the matching outfits at the next Winterfest. After Vincent returned to the changing room, Catherine spoke to the shopkeeper. "I'll take both of them." She handed the shopkeeper her credit card.

"A very good choice, my lady."

When Vincent came out, the young woman took his outfit and packed it up with the one Catherine wanted.

"That is an awful lot of money for two sets of clothes." Vincent said quietly to Catherine. With his hearing, he had been aware of everything said, even while he was in the changing room.

"It's worth it to be able to see you in it and to remind us of the fun we had today. Besides, I think we will make quite a splash at the next Winterfest."

The shopkeeper handed Catherine back her card and gave the bundled package to Vincent. Because of the warming afternoon air, Catherine's mask was becoming a bit uncomfortable so she removed it and placed it in the bundle with their newly purchased clothes. Then, arm in arm, Vincent and Catherine exited the shop and rejoined the throng wandering the faire grounds.

A minute later Vincent came to an abrupt stop as he stared in surprise at what appeared to be a cross between a human and a six-point buck standing under a tree at the edge of one of the two main common eating areas. The antlers and the fur covering his torso looked so real. The creature had been scanning the colorful crowd when he noticed Vincent. His attention seemed to lock onto Vincent with a puzzled expression.

Vincent blinked. The eyes of the man-buck blinked almost as though in response. Then his eyes widened in surprise.

"Vincent? What ..." Catherine's voice trailed off as she glanced over in the same direction that Vincent was staring and caught sight of the man-buck. For several seconds the three of them stood staring at each other across the open area.

A young woman wearing a barbarian hunter's costume complete with longbow and carrying two cups of some amber colored liquid, trotted up to the man-buck. She glanced over at Vincent then did an almost comically perfect double take and he caught just a hint of _recognition_ from the woman as she made some comment to the man-buck. The man-buck said something to the woman and her head snapped back around toward him and she stared in surprise. Vincent felt a strong sense of _surprise, confusion_ and_ disbelief _coming from the outlandish couple. The man-buck said something else to the barbarian woman and she dragged her gaze away from Vincent then gave the man-buck one of the two drinks she was carrying. He took a sip from his drink, linked his arm with hers and, with a nod the two of them, turned and disappeared into the crowd.

After a few more seconds, Vincent shook off his stunned paralysis and looked at Catherine. She was gazing back at him with a bemused look on her face that perfectly matched the emotions he felt from her over their bond. He had seen several examples of fantasy creatures and man-beasts since he and Catherine had arrived at this Renaissance Festival, some more successfully executed than others, but this was the first time he had found himself wondering if it was real.

Catherine was the first to speak. "Either that was the best example of movie makeup I have ever seen in my life, or you are not the only physically unique individual that is hiding in plain sight at this faire."

"You don't really believe that was real do you?" Vincent's eyebrows rode up in surprise.

"Didn't you wonder? I can sense your emotions as well, you know. You saw the same thing I saw." She shrugged her shoulders. "If I had seen you here seventeen years ago, I would not have believed you were real." She shook her head. "But meeting you has shaken many of my certainties from that time."

They gazed at each other for a moment then they both shook their heads. "Naw." They both responded.

With another shrug, they both continued on their way and soon became engrossed in a shop that specialized in statues of dragons and other fantasy creatures. After looking around for a while, Vincent sensed the _attention_ of the man sitting in the corner behind the counter. He noticed that the man kept glancing over at him while scribbling furiously on the artist's tablet he was holding. He decided to ignore the man and, after several more minutes, they moved on to the next shop.

~ o ~

An hour later, Catherine and Vincent were near one of the stages at the far end of the field. Catherine was drawn in by the barker style patter coming from the two men dressed as Spanish conquistadors. They were hawking their comedy sword fighting show that was about to start. Just as she and Vincent took their seats, Joe and Sammy showed up and sat next to them.

"Some of the shopkeepers recommended this show." Sammy chimed in.

"We were told that this show is as popular as the Merlin show." Added Joe.

Chris and Sharon came up and joined them. Chris commented. "Several people recommended this show to us."

Soon the show started. It seemed to consist of a lot of impressive swordplay mixed with a lot of jokes with double entendres thrown in. They brought two young men up from the audience, supposedly to teach them sword fighting. They gave the two volunteers foam swords that were not quite stiff enough to stand up under their own weight. They then proceeded to have some fun with the two young men including several jokes about not being able to get their weapons up.

After the volunteers returned to the audience the two entertainers did some impressive tricks with whips.

The two swordsmen announced that they were going to do 'Something difficult'. The crowd responded "ooooh!" Then they were going to do 'something dangerous'. The crowd responded "aaaah!" Finally they were going to do 'something stupid'. The crowd responded with a very enthusiastic "yea!" Obviously many were familiar with the routine.

The shorter of the two swordsmen entered the audience looking for a volunteer. He reached the point where Vincent and his friends were sitting. The way they were seated made it obvious how they were coupled. "What's wrong with this picture?" He asked as he noticed how mismatched each couple was. "Looks to me like they've been playing musical dates."

He began to flirt with Catherine then the taller swordsman on stage commented. "I don't know about difficult but, based on the looks of her escort, messing with that particular fairy might be classified as both dangerous and stupid."

The shorter swordsman eyed Vincent a moment. "I got an idea." He bounded back up to the front and disappeared backstage. A few seconds later he reappeared and bounded back out to where Vincent and Catherine were sitting. "You look like you could use a manicure." He then pulled out a giant oversized file.

Catherine glanced at Vincent who looked down at his claws as the rest of the audience started laughing. Vincent looked back up at Catherine then shrugged. The deadpan look on his face, along with the ludicrous image in her head of Vincent trying to use that giant file on his claws, combined with the _amusement_ that she could feel bubbling up inside Vincent, over their bond, was too much for her. Catherine started cracking up.

The rest of Vincent's friends also lost it. Finally, Vincent, unable to hold it in any longer, also cracked up.

The swordsmen commented. "I never thought we would get a chance to use this prop." Then he moved on and finally selected a young woman in shorts and tee shirt to take up to the stage. There were several more humorous references to Vincent's claws, the oversized file and the three mismatched couples throughout the rest of the show.

After the swordplay show was over, Catherine left a generous tip in the hat as they left.

~ o ~

As they were crossing the central area of the faire grounds Vincent was startled by the sight before him.

In a small enclosed arena Charles and Jacob were sword fighting with foam padded swords while Elizabeth and Linda cheered them on. All three sets of parents stopped to watch the spectacle.

Apparently for a small fee they were each given a padded sword and padded head gear. They were taught some very basic sword fighting moves then they were turned loose to practice on each other for five minutes. At that moment Lawrence and Jennifer arrived from the other direction and stopped over by the girls to watch the fun.

After the boys were done they all joined up and headed across the grounds to the next destination.

~ o ~

The next stop was the glassblower's pavilion where they had originally planned to meet up with the children. Jenny and the youngest twins were already there. Nancy and Paul showed up about five minutes later. They all found seats to watch the demonstration. Vincent was fascinated by the exhibition of the art of glassblowing. After the demonstration was finished, they looked over the shop's wares and purchased a few items as gifts for some of the people of the tunnels. Catherine also purchased a dark blue and silver vase and a matching serving platter that struck her fancy for the parlor of their brownstone.

It was getting late and they all decided that they wanted to go watch the Jousting Tournament so they all headed to the back part of the grounds where the jousting field was located. By the time they arrived, the crowd had already swollen to impressive proportions.

Vincent glanced around at the field and at the stands on the far side where the king and queen were taking their place along with their court. Vincent was reminded of all the stories from his childhood of King Arthur and his knights. The trumpets sounded their call and soon the tournament had begun.

The preliminary events consisted mostly of various tests of skill on horseback. The performers were in light leather armor and were riding standard size horses. The preliminaries were soon over and there was a short break that was filled in with a short duel between two performers that acted like they had both had a bit too much mead. After the humorous duel the field was cleared. The trumpets again sounded and the knights came out in full plate armor and riding on their great war-horses. Vincent was surprised at how large the warhorses were. He had seen pictures and videos of them but the reality was far more impressive. The horses with their knights were led around the arena as a brightly clad person stood in the middle of the field, loudly introducing them. Then, as the two knights took up positions at opposite ends of the field, the crowd was divided into two groups and assigned the knight that they were supposed to cheer for. Vincent and his friends were in the group that cheered for the knight dressed in yellow and green.

As the joust began, Vincent felt the ground rumble against his feet as the horses thundered past. He felt a visceral tingle shoot up his spine to match the vibrations that traveled up his legs from the ground. He felt the thrill as the lances shattered against the opponent's shield. He felt the emotions of those around him wash over him as they watched the spectacle. He glanced to his left at Joe and Sammy and beyond them to his sons and their girl friends, all cheering wildly for their champion. He glanced over to his right at Chris and Sharon and beyond to the rest of their friends. He glanced at the rest of their children arrayed in front of them. Finally, he glanced at Catherine to see her smiling back at him as their arms went around each other. It hit him then that this whole day was all real and he was, actually, here experiencing it all with his family and friends. Once again he marveled at the way Catherine was always finding ways to give him experiences that everyone else 'knew' he could never have.

Vincent thought about all the times that Devin and he had gone on those imaginary adventures to Camelot as children. He would have a lot to write about, both in his journals and to Devin, once they had returned home.

Vincent tightened his arm around Catherine and felt her response, physically and emotionally. Then his attention was again draw to the spectacle as the two knights made another pass.

On the fourth pass the black and red knight was unhorsed. The green and yellow knight dismounted grabbing his sword. At the same time, the black and red knight stood up and retrieved his sword. Both knights were soon engaged in battle and a wild spectacular sword fight ensued. Vincent was fully engrossed in the show as he loudly cheered his knight to victory. Then the show was over and it was nearly time for the faire to close.

Tired and happy, the entire group made their way to the front gates. All the way out to their vans they talked and laughed about what they had seen and done during their day at the faire.

~ o ~

As they were packing all of their equipment and treasures into the back of the vans they established that they were all hungry and were discussing what to do since it was getting late and no one was really interested in cooking. A passerby overheard them and suggested that there were several fast food places up where the county road crossed the highway.

"But we're not exactly appropriately dressed for eating out." Catherine objected.

The stranger chuckled. "This time of year those places are used to getting all kinds of outlandishly dressed customers."

When they reached the highway Joe led them into the parking lot where most of the restaurants were located. After a bit of discussion they chose a hamburger place and all went in to get takeout. The stranger had been right. The place was full of people fresh from the faire and the workers behind the counters barely gave them a second look. Once everyone had their orders they all piled back into the vans and were soon back at the lake.

They all sat around the fire pit and ate their food while talking about what they had done at the faire.

After they had finished off the meal, everyone was so tired that they all headed straight to bed and were soon sound asleep.

~ o ~

The next morning everyone ended up at the lake where they fixed a breakfast of omelets. The rest of the day was spent playing in the lake with breaks for lunch and dinner around the fire pit.

Nancy, Paul and Jenny left immediately after dinner. Jenny had to get her car atNancy's and head home. Paul had an early morning at work the next day.

Immediately after sundown the three Vans were loaded up and they began the two hour trip back toNew York. That night Vincent drew Catherine in close as they settled into their own bed and thanked her for giving him such a wonderful weekend.

_**The End  
**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

V.12.4.2


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